A motorist is attempting to challenge a traffic fine which he believes was wrongfully imposed in terms of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act 46 of 1998 (AARTO).
The disgruntled motorist, Justin Brown, told the Northsider that he was charged with operating a vehicle at between 91km/ h and 95km/ h on Christiaan de Wet Road between Wilhelmina Avenue and Hendrik Potgieter Road where the speed limit is 60km/ h.
Brown plans to contest his fine of R625 as he claims to be a law-abiding road user.
“This is absurd,” he claimed. “Firstly, as a habit I do not exceed the speed limit, even less so where I know they’ve been trapping for the last 10 plus years. That would be incredibly stupid,” he explained.
He said he tried without any success to contact the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) AARTO Unit, and JMPD. “I have exhausted just about every avenue trying to query the traffic fine. I have attempted to complete an AARTO 08 form, but keep getting an ‘out-dated form’ error message,” he said.
In his defence, he further raised technical glitches, saying that, “Based on the TCSP guidelines and the type of speed-measuring equipment used, there must be no overlap with another vehicle – which there was in the form of oncoming traffic – and there must be no solid, flat object taller than 1m within 15 degrees, which there was in the form of the Sasol Garage banner”.
He added that the fine was a big cause for concern, especially considering the planned demerit system that will be implemented soon. “It will see many people having points deducted when in fact no actual infringement has been committed,” he lamented.
The JMPD spokesperson, Superintendent Wayne Minnaar advised that Brown visits the JMPD traffic fine office between Village and Loveday Street in the Johannesburg CBD to address the issue.
Have you ever felt that a traffic fine was issued to you illegally? Share your thoughts by sending an email to northside@caxton.co.za.
